Saturday, August 24, 2013

The Fazzoletto, or handkerchief, vase was designed by Paolo Venini and Fulvio Bianconi in c. 1948. It has since become an icon of Muranese design and has been widely copied, notably by Chance in UK.

The distinctive shape of the Fazzoletto, which resembles an inverted draped handkerchief, has been produced in innumerable patterns, shapes, and sizes. Many of the variations continue the handkerchief theme with patterns of spots or stripes. From around 1950 it became a feature on sideboards and coffee tables throughout Italy and farther afield.

Large, well-decorated and signed Venini examples can fetch many times the value of plain examples. However, copies by other factories are worth very little. Examples with applied bases will generally be worth much less than those made in one piece, like this one.

Friday, August 23, 2013

Beswick Pottery
began as a manufacturer of tablewares in
Staffordshire, England, in 1894. It produced its first animal figurines around
1900 and by 1930 they had bacome a major part in the factory’s output. In 1969,
Beswick was sold to Royal Doulton but various pottery items, including
figurines, continued to be sold under the name ‘Beswick’. In 1989, production
of Beswick and Doulton animals merged under the Royal Doulton mark. The name ‘Beswick’
was used again from 1999 until the factory closed in 2002.

Budgerigars are popular pets and models are keenly collected. Rare pieces may fetch the price £800 - 1,200

Friday, August 9, 2013

The small glass
paperweight holding down your papers could be worth a large sum of money.
Complex designs produced in France during the mid-19th century are
generally worth the most, but more recent designs by british – and particularly
Scottish – makers can sell for hundreds of pounds.

The first
paperweight were made in 1843 on the Venetian island of Murano. Many featured
patterns made of tiny sections of glass canes known as millefiori (Italian for ‘thousand
flowers’), a decorative technique that epitomises paperweight design. Italian
paperweight can be worth great sums. One of the most notable makers, Pietro
Bigaglia, signed many of his weights with a ‘signature cane’ containing a ‘PB’
monogram, making them easier to identify. Large and complex examples of his
work can be worth over £5,000.

The ‘golden
age’ of the paperweight, from late 1845 until the mid-1850s, was inspired by
French designers.They created elaborate millefiori designs and introdced
weights containing lampworked flowers or fruit. Paperweights from this period
are often the most valuable, especially those by one of the three major French
factories: Baccarat (est.1764), Clichy (1837-1885) and St Louis (est. 1767).
Some weights include ‘signature cane’ – Baccarat used the letter ‘B’ and Clichy
used a ‘C’ or a trademark cane called the ‘Clichy rose’. if a weight is not
marked, and many are not, the maker can still be identified from the shape,
colours or patterns used.